This invention relates to a shock resistant automotive lamp that can be snap-locked into a body panel thereby eliminating the need for screws or the like.
It is highly desirous in the automotive industry to develope a tail light or running light unit for use in trucks and trailers that is both self-locking and shock resistant. By eliminating screw holes, clamping brackets and the like which are normally used to secure this type of lamp to the vehicle body, problems associated with rust are avoided and the time of assembly considerably shortened. Similarly, by making the unit shock resistant, the lamp is more effectively shielded from road induced stresses thereby considerably extending the life of the unit and the electrical components contained therein.
One type of shock resistant vehicular lamp that is in present use within the industry involves a sealed unit in which a bulb is contained within a plastic housing and the housing is closed by a lens. The unit is typically mounted within the body panel of a vehicle by means of an overly large rubber groummet. The groummet is snapped into an opening in the auto panel and the lamp unit, in turn, is snapped into the groummet. It has been found however, that the groummet can become worn and/or weakened with age and prolonged usage. As a consequence, the lamp unit can work itself loose, particularly when subjected to relatively high road stresses, and become dislodged from the groummet. When this occurs the lamp can fall from the panel thus damaging either the lamp or the electrical components associated therewith. It should be further noted that because the lamp unit is totally sealed, any failure of the bulb requires that the entire unit be discarded and replaced with a new unit. This practice has proven to be wasteful and expensive.